Planning board backs 39-unit Flagler Drive redevelopment despite neighbor opposition; multiple waivers granted

The West Palm Beach Planning Board on March 18 recommended approval of a rezoning and site-plan package for a proposed luxury residential tower at 3705 South Flagler Drive, a parcel now occupied by a 1962 condominium that the applicant proposes to replace with a single new residential tower and a small commercial component.

Applicant presentation: Attorney Harvey Oyer, representing the applicant PK Flagler House LLC, said the proposal is a lateral rezoning from MF-32 to a Residential Planned Development (RPD) covering roughly 1.42 acres. Oyer described a development program that would keep the total apartment count at 39 units but reconfigure the site into a single tower with podium parking and large units (floor areas cited during the presentation ranged from roughly 2,700 sq ft for two- and three-bedroom units up to 5,700 sq ft for four-bedroom units and a roughly 10,000 sq ft penthouse). Oyer said the project places parking below grade and in a podium, concentrates vertical massing in a tower centered on the site to preserve lateral view corridors, and includes an amenitized podium deck and active uses facing Flagler Drive.

Waivers requested: The application included seven waivers to the code, the most substantive being side-setback reductions (a request that reduces the required side setbacks and thereby allows additional building height through the RPD mechanism). Oyer and the project team said the tower approach and increased front/rear setbacks result in better view preservation for neighboring buildings compared with a lower, wider building built strictly by right. Other waiver requests addressed the minimum RPD area (the code still references a 10-acre minimum for some RPD standards), additional access points on each street frontage, driveway separation and buffer interruptions associated with more than one access point, and small encroachments for pedestrian stairs and guardrail heights needed to meet FEMA freeboard and arrival-level grading.

Staff and technical review: Planning staff supported the rezoning recommendation and found the application met applicable rezoning, site-plan and waiver standards (staff provided a written recommendation and conditions). Staff also noted the project met or exceeded several landscape and open-space metrics, and the project team said they would design drainage and resilience measures to current FEMA requirements. Staff noted the parcel’s existing multifamily designation and that the project would not increase unit count beyond the 39 units currently on site.

Public comment: The hearing drew more than 40 speakers. Supporters — including residents from nearby single-family and multifamily properties, downtown business representatives and the Palm Beaches Chamber of Commerce — praised the architecture, landscaping and economic benefits, and asked the board to approve. Several owners of units in the existing Flagler House said they supported the developer’s acquisition and buyout proposal. Opponents — including several residents of neighboring condominiums such as Portofino South and Prospect Park area residents — objected to height, shadowing and scale, the introduction of a commercial tenant space in a residential area (a 996-square-foot pet-grooming space was proposed), driveway separation and safety concerns on Washington Road, and potential drainage impacts. Some neighborhood groups circulated surveys showing strong opposition to the tower’s proposed height and scale.

Board action: After extended public comment and board discussion, the board voted unanimously to recommend the rezoning (MF-32 to RPD), to grant the requested waivers and to approve site-plan review subject to the staff conditions dated March 18, 2025. The motion recorded the board’s findings against the rezoning and site-plan standards and included staff-recommended conditions.

Why it matters: The project replaces an aging 1960s condominium with a modern, higher-end building. Applicant representatives argued the change is driven in part by new condominium inspection and repair requirements statewide following the Surfside collapse and by market demand for higher-end for-sale product; opponents focused on neighborhood scale, view blockage and precedent issues. The item will proceed to the City Commission for final action on rezoning and related entitlements; the applicant will need to meet conditions in the staff report and finalize engineering, drainage and FAA/height determinations as the project advances.